Kingston could give test run to snow parking plan

KINGSTON, N.Y. -- City lawmakers may try out alternate-side-of-the-street parking during snow emergencies in a single ward next winter.

Alderman Robert Senor, who chairs the Common Council's Laws and Rules Committee, said committee members during a meeting on Tuesday appeared to favor trying out the plan in Ward 4, which is in Midtown.

Senor, D-Ward 8, previously objected to implementing the alternate-side parking anywhere in the city, saying it would "cause a nightmare," but he said on Wednesday that he's willing to try it in one area.

"Sometimes things work," Senor said. "We will see what happens."

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Alternate-side parking during snow emergencies has been discussed as a way to leave plows enough room to clear city streets. The council balked at the plan but it voted unanimously last month to let the city Department of Public Works superintendent to declare a snow emergency based solely on weather forecasts.

Previously, a snow emergency was not declared until 3 inches of snow accumulated, and at that point, vehicles parked on city streets had to be moved or risk being towed.

Under the new rule, drivers have two hours to move their vehicles once a snow emergency is declared.

The alternate-side plan that council members rejected would have required vehicles to be moved to the odd-numbered side of the street once a snow emergency was declared. After a 24-hour period, vehicles would have needed to be moved to the even-numbered side of the street. Then, if the street was not cleared in that 48-hour period, the odd-even process would have started again.

Schupp said the alternate-side parking rule would make life easier for city residents because they would not have to move their vehicles to municipal lots or people's driveways.